The Prince and the Kotatsu
by Seasnake
Summary: Tamaki's mother used to tell him stories about princes who would follow their threads to find their princesses. Tamaki can't wait to find the princess at the end of his own string. Red thread of fate. Soulmates. Soul mates. Tamaki/Kyouya


Little Tamaki sat with his bear on his mother's bed. She was still feeling weak but awake enough to read a book to Tamaki. She told him a fairytale about a prince who followed his red thread to a dragon's cave and saved his princess.

"Do I have a princess Mere?" Tamaki held up his left hand to look at the red ring on his second to last finger. His thread passed through the wall of the house and into the distance, always pointing the same direction. When the boy was in the gardens he used it as a compass to find his way home again.

"It might be a princess. But whoever it is she'll make you happy. Even though you haven't met yet that string connects your souls." Tamaki smiled up at her and said he wished he could see her thread too. He bet it was pretty.

As he got older Tamaki learned that his motionless string meant that his soulmate lived far away. He hoped they would move to France so the he wouldn't have to wait too long to meet them. If they didn't come to him then he would have to be like a fairy tale prince and go on an epic quest to find the end of his thread.

Then Tamaki's father came back into their lives, and this time he brought his mother with him. Grandma Suoh didn't hide her contempt for Tamaki and his mother. She called Tamaki mean things like 'bastard' and wouldn't talk to him directly. Her rejection hurt and Tamaki didn't want to leave but his mother needed the money for her medicine.

She told Tamaki that it was okay, that she wanted him to go to Japan and prove himself. She believed in him and didn't want him to worry about her. Besides, she added, his soulmate might be in Japan, going there might be his destiny. Her encouragement made Tamaki feel a little better but he still cried on the plane.

The next time Tamaki looked at his thread he was riding in the back of a car with his father. He just glanced down at it for comfort then started bouncing up and down in his seat. "It's moving! My thread's moving!" Even with the car slowly rolling through the city streets, it was obvious that thread was moving from left to right on the horizon. Tamaki was close enough to his soulmate to see them move. He excitedly looked to his father. The man had a forlorn smile while he watched his own ring finger.

"Mother is on the other end?" Tamaki asked softly. Mr. Suoh nodded.

"I think everyone wishes life was more like the stories. Not everyone gets to be with their soulmate. If you do find your mate, don't tell anyone who it is. There are people who will try to use mates against each other." Tamaki nodded, Mother had warned him about that. "Things don't always work out like we want them to. But I want you to know Tamaki, I love your mother and you, very much." Mr. Suoh patted Tamaki's head in one of few shows of affection he'd be able to give the boy in the next several years.

Newly in Japan, Tamaki was not only fascinated wit the culture and sights but also with watching his thread twitch. His mate was definitely nearby. During the day his thread pointed in a different direction than it did at night when his mate was probably in bed. Soon he'd meet her, maybe him. At night he dreamed of princes from his mother's stories.

His first day at Ouran and his thread was moving even more. Tamaki watched eagerly as it moved through the walls. Was his soulmate in the school? The vice principal had to call Tamaki's name twice before he followed the man to an office. He sat in a chair and went back to staring at his red thread as the man went to fetch the class representatives. As Tamaki watched, his string moved along the wall as if following a person walking towards the door. He froze, holding his breath as the door opened.

The vice principal stepped inside but Tamaki didn't notice him. His eyes traveled from the familiar loop on his finger, along the taunt red line, to where it was tied around the left ring finger of a dark haired boy in the doorway. It just ended. It didn't extend too far for him to chase or disappear into a wall. The boy with glasses, Tamaki's soulmate, blinked at Tamaki's raised hand then glanced down at his own, seemingly in shock.

Tamaki didn't hear a word the adult was saying. None of that mattered right now.

"Ahhh!" He leapt from his chair and ran to hug his mate. "I can't believe it! I'm so happy to finally see you!" Tamaki grabbed his mate and pressed their cheeks together. Poor guy was apparently still stunned because all he did was flinch. "I knew you were there I did, but you were always so far away. And I just got to Japan and…"

"Yes!" his mate shouted over him. "I'm sure it's very exciting to move to a new country. If you like I can give you a tour of the campus." Tamaki's mate gave him a smile that was pleasant but felt forced and fake. Tamaki frowned, not sure what his mate was talking about. "I'm sure you have lots you want to talk about, we'll discuss it while we walk." He gave a pointed look. Tamaki then remembered what his father had warned him about.

"Oh right, I'm sorry." Tamaki reluctantly let go of his mate and stepped back to a more socially acceptable distance. "I was just so exited. I would love a tour."

Tamaki had to make a conscious effort not to skip as he followed his mate outside. He was practically vibrating with energy by the time his mate came to a stop.

"Alright, no one should be here this time of day but try to keep your voice dow…"

"Ah! Mon Ami!" Tamaki leapt on him. "I'm so happy!" He stopped nuzzling the boy when he realized something. "Wait, what's your name?"

"You don't know?" He frowned then answered, "Otori Kyoya."

"Yay! Kyoya, mon âme soeur!"

"Stop shouting," Kyoya grumbled but then quickly schooled himself.

"Oh, is that to forward? We are mates."  
"Yes, we're mates, just calm down for a second, please." Tamaki let go of his mate but couldn't contain his enthusiasm.

"This is great! You can show me all about Japan. I want to go to Kyoto and see the Great Budda, Goryoraku Park and some Shisa. We can go sight seeing!"

"Uh… none of those things are actually in Kyoto."

"No!" Tamaki sat down to pout. His plans with his new mate were ruined.

"We'll just see them all separately. We can go to Kyoto this weekend and visit another on the next school break." Tamaki gasped as his brilliant mate figured out a solution.

"Yay, Kyoya! You're like a god!" He started jumping up and down with happiness. "Bravo! Kyoya, mon âme soeur! Yippeee!" Kyoya just stared up at him, having apparently fallen down at some point. Seeing his mate sitting down reminded Tamaki of another thing.

"Oh, Kyoya, I almost forgot." He sat down opposite him on the walkway as if they were already at a kotatsu. "Do you have a kotatsu at your house? We need to sit at one since we're in Japan but all the furniture at my place is Western," he said sadly. Kyoya stared at him a second longer then gave that uncomfortable smile again.

"Unfortunately we don't have a kotatsu at my place either, we do have Japanese décor though."

"Oh no!" Tamaki wailed. "I'm so sorry, Kyoya!" He lunged forward to hug his mate again. "Your family isn't very close is it?"

"What?"

"You don't have to hide it from me. I know kotatsu are a symbol of a happy family. Well, I'll sit with you under one! We can play footsie under it and watch cartoons while building bonds of trust and of course we'll eat Mandarin oranges." Tamaki smiled but Kyoya looked more confused by his declaration than anything else.

"Uh… I think you're getting ahead of things, here."

"Huh?"

"We may be mates but we did just meet. How about we organize doing things one at a time?" His false smile was back.

"Oh?" Tamaki frowned, did his mate not want to share a kotatsu? No that couldn't be it. "Your family believes in getting to know each other first?" Most mates Tamaki knew of became close right away but he'd heard of one couple taking months before moving in together.

"Yes, we should try being normal friends first." Kyoya seemed to jump at the chance.

"Okay, anything for you Kyoya." Tamaki smiled at his mate. He was so beautiful, just like Tamaki knew he would be. After all, Tamaki was gorgeous so the other half of his soul had to be too. "If we're just friends right now I guess I can't kiss you, huh? Do you know when I'll be able to?" Kyoya's handsome face turned a vibrant shade of red.

"Let's not worry about that right now." The boy quickly moved away.

"I'm not gay," Tamaki figured he should probably add that. "But you're so good looking I don't mind at all."

"Right." Kyoya got to his feet, visually more flustered than he had been at the beginning of their conversation. "Let's not tell anyone about this, alright."

"You want to keep it a secret?"

"Like I said, we just met, no need to hurry things along."

"Alright, it's our secret. Not that I have anyone I'd tell anyway." Tamaki pouted but Kyoya let out a sigh of relief.

Tamaki loved his mate. He didn't know much about him yet but that just made him excited to learn. He wished he could call his mom or even his father but the small estate remained lonely except for the nice maids. At school Kyoya kept him at arms length. Tamaki tried to hold his hand once and got a brief glare followed by a bland smile. The rest of the class was nice though so Tamaki didn't mind spending time with them.

They went to Kyoto on the weekend. Tamaki was so excited that he didn't realize how demanding he sounded until the end of the day. He made sure to apologize to Kyoya for dragging him around so much.

It was kind of odd that Kyoya forgot about studying for finals and wanted to go a trip again the next weekend, he was obviously so studious. But his forgetfulness just meant that he was more excited about their soul bond than he let on. That made Tamaki happy.

"Something wrong, Young Master?" one of the maids asked Tamaki.

"Hm? No. I'm just thinking about my soulmate. What they might be like." Tamaki glanced up from staring at the string he now knew had Kyoya at the other end.

"It is lovely," the woman sighed happily.

"Have you found your mate?" Tamaki asked. All of the help at the small estate were very friendly and he liked talking to them.

"Five years." The maid held up her left hand fondly. "I always know where he is. In the morning I watch for it to move to make sure he gets out of bed on time. He's such a sleepy head."

"Kyoya's like that," Tamaki mused then realized his mistake. "I mean…"

"Shhh," the woman held a finger to her lips. "Don't worry, if there's one thing a maid knows how to do it's keep a secret."

"Is it strange that I love him?" Tamaki couldn't help but ask. "It's just… he doesn't want to acknowledge it at all."

"He's probably just surprised and bit scared. It's a big deal especially for two people the same gender."

"What?" Tamaki sat up straighter. "People care about that?" He knew about Adam and Eve, he understood the problem with homosexuality but soulmates were different. Everyone he had ever met agreed that fate was more important than everything else. Sure some mates, especially same sex ones, didn't get married but that was for people who met later in life. He and Kyoya were connected. How could they not be together? Even considering anything else felt wrong.

The maid sighed sadly. "Most people in my social circles don't. But, rich society, company heads…it matters. I've heard of people ignoring their mates because they were too poor, from a bad family, or same-sex."

"My heart's breaking. I'm so sorry, Kyoya! I should have asked you about it. I'll do that right now. We'll figure out how to be mates. And he should have the kotatsu out, we'll sit under it and plan." Tamaki decided and ran for the door.

Kyoya wasn't home when Tamaki got there so he played the piano while he waited. Kyoya apparently had two brothers and a sister. It was nice to get to impress his mate's family, and even better to impress Kyoya himself when he finally showed up.

"Sorry to drop by so suddenly," Tamaki said once they were alone. "I just wanted to ask, is there…any particular reason that you want our secret to stay a secret?"

"Like I said earlier, I'd like to get to know you better. We should able to act like mates before introducing ourselves as such." Tamaki felt that there was something else going on but Kyoya clearly didn't want to talk about it so he changed the subject.

"You have a really nice house Kyoya, I wonder if this is bigger than my place back in France."

"Well, I don't know about your mansion in France but your estate should be bigger than this."

"I've never been to the main estate. I'm not allowed to see it and the second estate is small. I though you knew," Tamaki said with a sad smile. "My grandmother…she doesn't like me. I'm on a probationary period. I probably won't be the Suoh heir." Kyoya looked surprised, at least his fake smile was gone. "But that's okay, honestly, I'm not all that interested in my father's line of work. So, it's great you're my mate. I've got these great looks and I'm pretty smart. I'll help you with your business. It's hospitals, right? Being a scientist or a doctor would be nice. I could help sick people. And can you picture us on a magazine cover? We'll be the best looking soulmates in Japan, maybe the world."

"What are you babbling about? I'm not the Otori heir," Kyoya snapped with more venom in his voice than Tamaki had heard before.

"Really? That's surprising," Tamaki frowned.

"How is that surprising? You saw my brothers, they're first in line. I'm just going to work for them."

"But Kyoya, you're obviously not happy with your situation. I can see it in your eyes. Why would you give up so easily?"

"I'm not giving up. It's just the way things are. And didn't you just say you'd do the same thing?" Kyoya was getting mad now. His entire posture was tense.

"If we try my grandmother might accept me. We can run my family's company if you want. I don't care either way," Tamaki offered. Instead of calming down something in Kyoya snapped.

"SHUT UP!" He flipped the table over, probably breaking the china and shoved Tamaki to the carpet before the blonde knew what was going on. "You expect me to believe that crap?! How can you not want to be family's heir when it's been all but handed to you? How could my thread be connected to you? Just stop it! This isn't a fairy tale soulmates don't fall in love and ride off into the sunset. You're just supposed to help me succeed in life and you're useless. All you have to do is try and you'll have what I never will. And you say you don't even want it?" He sat over Tamaki shook him by the front of his shirt. "Damn you! Who the hell are you?"

For a moment they sat there in silence. "I'm your soulmate, Kyoya." Tamaki looked up at his distressed mate. "And you're the one who's not trying. If you want to be the heir then do it." That got Kyoya to stare down at him with a confused expression. "The one who has given up is you, Kyoya."

The dark haired boy looked stunned and froze. "Oh by the way," Tamaki suddenly remembered. "Do you have the kotatsu out? If we're going to get to know each other as mates we should sit under one. That's why I stopped by your place." Kyoya, shocked expression disappeared and he started to laugh hysterically. "Huh, what's so funny?" Tamaki sat up a bit. "Wait, I bet you're hiding the kotatsu from me."

"It's not all about you, idiot." Kyoya suddenly hit him on the top of the head. "Kotatsu are only used in the winter so wait until then." He stood up over Tamaki and looked down on him with an evil smirk. "You're such a dumbass."

Tamaki blinked up at his mate. "Is that your real face?" He gave a happy smile. "Thank goodness that fake smile is gone. This suits you a lot better."

"God, how are you my mate?" Kyoya's tone was more teasing this time.

"That's obvious, I'm here to be your idiot." Tamaki sat forward and hugged Kyoya around the waist. The other boy gave an amused snort at that.

After a moment of peaceful silence Tamaki tilted his head from where it was pressed against the other's shirt to look up at his face. "Kyoya, now that you're being honest. Is there any reason we need to be so secretive?"

Kyoya sighed, "my parents were mates. I don't really know what their relationship was like but my father is old fashioned. Soulmates don't have to mean anything. He only let Fuyumi her mate get married after he officially became vice president of his father's company and signed a contract with Otori Medical." He placed a hand on Tamaki's head in an almost absent minded gesture. "If he knew you weren't only a rival family but also an illegitimate son and a boy…"

"Oh…I understand. I'll keep it a secret." Tamaki held Kyoya a little closer. "Can we sit together, even if it's not under a kotatsu?"

"Only if you won't be so clingy."

From that point on, Tamaki was confident in saying that Kyoya started to love him back. And of course he loved Kyoya more and more. Every second of every day his love got bigger. He wished he could tell his mother about it. He settled for telling his dog, Marie, and Kyoya's sister, Fuyumi, about it. The second time he stopped by their house Fuyumi greeted him with. "Hello again, Suoh. You and Kyoya are mates, right? It's so obvious. I've never seen him so passionate about anyone before. And don't worry, of course I won't tell Father. I know how strict he is about these things." Kyoya frowned at his sister knowing but Tamaki took to calling her Big Sis.

Tamaki wished they could at least hold hands at school but Kyoya worried that his father had eyes everywhere. Kyoya wanted to take things slowly in private and it wasn't until winter that he let Tamaki kiss him. It was okay though, because they got to sit under a kotatsu together and he was the only one who got to see Kyoya's real face.

The host club was a brilliant idea.

Everyone in the club was a little bit cautious around each other at first but soon they all started to become a family. Two months together and Tamaki decided it was time to give a demonstration of how much he trusted them. After club they were alone in the music room picking up. Tamaki changed out of his formal kimono then went over to Kyoya who was writing in his black notebook.

"Kyoya, ma moitié, can we rent more outfits soon?" He came up behind him and comfortably draped his arms around the other boy.

"The profits from today were promising, we'll see in a few weeks." Tamaki grinned and nuzzled into his mate's neck when he wasn't immediately shaken off.

"Oh, the king is having an affair with his advisor?" One of the twins couldn't help but comment, Tamaki guessed it was Hikaru. Tamaki gasped and leaned away from Kyoya so that he wouldn't shout in his ear, he'd gotten smacked several times for doing that.

"How dare you use such a dirty word for our bond? The Host King won't stand for that!" Tamaki pointed an accusatory finger at the twins.

"You're serious?"

"Kyoya-senpai, is he being serious?"

"Think whatever you want." Kyoya didn't look up from his writing.

"I think you're a cute couple," Honey-senpai offered.

"Aren't we? We're the 'opposites attract' type." Kyoya was no longer paying attention. A little over a year together hand he had gotten very good at selective hearing.

The very next week Tamaki entered the music room and smiled to see the tropical flowers and new china he had ordered. He went over to look at his purchases when the twins, Honey, and Mori entered.

"What's this boss?" one of the twins asked.

"A new tea set," Tamaki said proudly.

"Kyoya-chan said not to buy that."

"Yeah, remember, we all got a lecture on spending money." Tamaki froze, oh right. Now he remembered. Kyoya was going to be pissed. One thought about the face Kyoya made when he was well and truly angry had Tamaki abandoning the tea set.

"Ahhh, he's coming, hide me!" The blond boy ducked under a table with a floor length table cloth a second before the doors opened. There was a moment of silence as Kyoya took in the scene and eyed the four visible members. They all glanced away and waved him off, showing they had nothing to do with it.

"Tamaki…" Kyoya growled. Tamaki double checked that he was hidden from view then focused on becoming one with the table. "I can see your thread, Dumbass!" Tamaki slapped a hand over his ring finger but the intangible red line just went straight tough his palm. Apparently, fate didn't want mates to hide from each other after a fight.

"Bonjor, mon cher Kyoya." Tamaki nervously lifted the table cloth to peer up at his furious mate. Kyoya glared at him while everyone else very pointedly made themselves busy on the other side of the room. "How are you?"

"Do you think I come up with these numbers at random?! That I just doodle all day?"

"Of course not, Kyoya."

"Then when I say we don't have money for something we don't have the money! Do you want your stupid club to go bankrupt?"

"No. I'm sorry, Kyoya." Tamaki hugged his mate apologetically. "I was just so excited. I didn't mean to ignore you. I've just never run a club before. From now on you make all the purchases. Yes, change the account passwords so I can't get any of the money. And I'll make it up what I spent. Tomorrow I'll go around the school to make sure everyone knows about the club so we can get more customers."

Kyoya let out a long sigh. "Damn it, you're impossible to stay mad at," he muttered. Tamaki recognized the fondness in his tone and smiled.

"So, you were serious?" Hikaru called a moment later.

"For obvious reasons this is a secret from our families," Kyoya added, seemingly unfazed.

"That we understand," the twins said in unison.

Tamaki lay on the carpet of Kyoya's room, next to the low table. Kyoya's room was large and sparsely decorated, it suited him. The dark haired boy sat on the other side of the table doing homework while Tamaki read silently from his history book. Peace was a rare thing for Tamaki with his mother's illness, his father's absence, and now his grandmother's spite. But here with Kyoya, their thread less than five feet in length, he felt content.

The room sounded silent to Tamaki but Kyoya looked up like he heard something. He was about to ask but Kyoya spoke first.

"My father's home. Stay here, I'll talk to him." He stood up and left the room before Tamaki could react. The French boy frowned to himself. After a minute he crept into the hallway. He could hear Kyoya and deep unpleasant voice that he assumed was Mr. Otori. He hesitated, not sure if he wanted to be caught eavesdropping but that concern failed to matter when he heard the sound of flesh hitting flesh. Rounding the corner, Tamaki met the horrifying sight of Mr. Ortori standing with one arm raised and Kyoya glasses askew, stumbling backwards and clutching the side of his face.

"Kyoya!" Tamaki didn't think before lunging to his mate's aid. "Get away from him!" He put his weight into the action and bodily shoved the man, forcing him to back up.

Father and son stared at him in shock, only then the specifics of the situation come back to Tamaki. "Uh, I mean…" he glanced up at the confused and angry man then sheepishly over his shoulder at Kyoya. More than anything the boy looked panicked. "I'm sorry," Tamaki gave a hasty bow to Kyoya's father then bolted back to the boy's room. He sat back at the table like nothing had happened and prayed he hadn't made things worse.

After what felt like an eternity, Kyoya came back. Tamaki stared at him, an angry red mark yet to fade from one cheek, as he closed the door.

"You idiot! What were you thinking?" Kyoya rounded on him now that they were alone. Tamaki didn't answer because he didn't have anything to say. The only thing on his mind was to hug his mate so that's what he did. "Tamaki," Kyoya grumbled when the other boy pulled him close. The blond boy buried his face in the junction of Kyoya's neck and shoulder. He could just hide there and nobody would ever hurt them again. Kyoya sighed, "it's alright."

"No, it's not alright." Tamaki held him tighter. He couldn't remember the last time he was this mad, he didn't even care that he was crying angry tears into Kyoya's neck. "I want to hurt him. I've never wanted to hurt anyone before."

"You're better than that." Kyoya hugged him back. "It's going to be years but once I'm an adult he won't be able to do that anymore."

"You don't deserve this, Kyoya. I promise, we'll always have a kotatsu, just the two of us. Forever and ever, promise" He leaned up and kissed Kyoya right below his glasses.

"Tamaki… mon cœur"

*Mother

*my friend

*my soul mate

*my other half

*my dear

*my heart


End file.
